Chapter 27

In the beginning of the reign of Jehoiakim the son of Josiah king of Judah came this word unto Jeremiah from the LORD, saying,²

Thus saith¹ the LORD to me; Make³ thee bonds and yokes, and put¹ them upon thy neck,

And send¹⁴ them to the king of Edom, and to the king of Moab, and to the king of the Ammonites, ⁵⁹⁸³ and to the king of Tyrus, and to the king of Zidon, by the hand of the messengers which come⁶ to Jerusalem unto Zedekiah king of Judah;

And command¹⁴ them to say² unto their masters, Thus saith¹ the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel; Thus shall ye say⁴ unto your masters;

I have made¹ the earth, the man and the beast that [are] upon the ground, by my great power and by my outstretched⁷ arm, and have given¹ it unto whom it seemed meet¹ unto me.

And now have I given¹ all these lands into the hand of Nebuchadnezzar the king of Babylon, my servant; and the beasts of the field have I given¹ him also to serve² him.

And all nations shall serve¹ him, and his son, and his son's son, until the very time of his land come:² and then many nations and great kings shall serve¹ themselves of him.

And it shall come to pass, [that] the nation and kingdom which will not serve⁴ the same Nebuchadnezzar the king of Babylon, and that will not put⁴ their neck under the yoke of the king of Babylon, that nation will I punish,⁴ saith⁷ the LORD, with the sword, and with the famine, and with the pestilence, until I have consumed² them by his hand.

Therefore hearken⁴ not ye to your prophets, nor to your diviners,⁶ nor to your dreamers, nor to your enchanters,²⁶ nor to your sorcerers, which speak⁶ unto you, saying,² Ye shall not serve⁴ the king of Babylon:

For they prophesy¹² a lie unto you, to remove you far⁵³ from your land; and that I should drive you out,⁵² and ye should perish.¹

But the nations that bring⁵⁵ their neck under the yoke of the king of Babylon, and serve¹ him, those will I let remain⁵² still in their own land, saith⁷ the LORD; and they shall till¹ it, and dwell¹ therein.

I spake¹⁴ also to Zedekiah king of Judah according to all these words, saying,² Bring⁵⁴ your necks under the yoke of the king of Babylon, and serve³ him and his people, and live.³

Why will ye die,⁴ thou and thy people, by the sword, by the famine, and by the pestilence, as the LORD hath spoken¹⁴ against the nation that will not serve⁴ the king of Babylon?

Therefore hearken⁴ not unto the words of the prophets that speak⁶ unto you, saying,² Ye shall not serve⁴ the king of Babylon: for they prophesy¹² a lie unto you.

For I have not sent¹ them, saith⁷ the LORD, yet they prophesy¹² a lie in my name; that I might drive you out,⁵³ and that ye might perish,¹ ye, and the prophets that prophesy¹² unto you.

Also I spake¹⁴ to the priests and to all this people, saying,² Thus saith¹ the LORD; Hearken⁴ not to the words of your prophets that prophesy¹² unto you, saying,² Behold, the vessels of the LORD'S house shall now shortly be brought again⁹⁴ from Babylon: for they prophesy¹² a lie unto you.

Hearken⁴ not unto them; serve³ the king of Babylon, and live:³ wherefore should this city be laid waste?

But if they [be] prophets, and if the word of the LORD be with them, let them now make intercession⁴ to the LORD of hosts, that the vessels which are left¹² in the house of the LORD, and [in] the house of the king of Judah, and at Jerusalem, go¹ not to Babylon.

For thus saith¹ the LORD of hosts concerning the pillars, and concerning the sea, and concerning the bases, and concerning the residue of the vessels that remain¹² in this city,

Which Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon took¹ not, when he carried away captive⁵³ Jeconiah the son of Jehoiakim king of Judah from Jerusalem to Babylon, and all the nobles of Judah and Jerusalem;

Yea, thus saith¹ the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel, concerning the vessels that remain¹² [in] the house of the LORD, and [in] the house of the king of Judah and of Jerusalem;

They shall be carried⁹³ to Babylon, and there shall they be until the day that I visit² them, saith⁷ the LORD; then will I bring them up,⁵² and restore⁵² them to this place.